WASHINGTON, Jul 25, 2017 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
Airlines
for America (A4A), the industry trade organization for the leading
U.S. airlines,
today urged Senators to oppose the unreleased Transportation, Housing
and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee effort to increase the
Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) tax. While the Committee has not made
the bill language public, airport sources indicate that the Subcommittee
voted today to increase and nearly double the PFC tax from $4.50 to
$8.50 which would result in a massive $3.2 billion tax hike on every air
traveler who takes to the skies.

“Airline passengers already pay over $20 billion a year in taxes for the
tickets they purchase. Adding another $3.2 billion tax hike on American
travelers simply cannot be justified. The truth of the matter is that
airports are flush with cash. It is disingenuous at best for Congress to
repeatedly saddle traveling families and businesses with tax-hike after
tax-hike while airports are sitting on billions in unused funds.
Congress has access to over $7 billion in unobligated tax revenue
sitting idle in the aviation trust fund that could be used instead of
raising taxes. Choosing to increase this tax is a completely unnecessary
poke in the eye and wallet of air travelers. We urge Senators on both
sides of the aisle to stand with the 2.4 million people who fly every
day by sending a message that tax hikes simply won’t fly,” said A4A
President and CEO Nicholas E. Calio.

If enacted, raising the Airport Tax from $4.50 to $8.50 means:

Travelers who fly will be hit with an additional $3.2 billion in
taxes.

The tax bite on an average $300 round-trip ticket would increase to
$78, or 26 percent (up from $63, or 21 percent they pay today).

An extra $64 for a family of four taking a round-trip connecting
flight.

Congress has repeatedly rejected raising airport taxes because there
is no basis to support such an increase.

Our industry workshand-in-hand with airports. More
than $100 billion of capital projects have been completed, are
underway or have been approved at the nation’s 30 largest airports
since 2008, from Washington Dulles to Chicago O’Hare, Los Angeles and
LaGuardia. Development is also robust at the nation’s smaller
airports, including locations like Des Moines, Nashville and
Reno-Tahoe.

Asked at a Congressional hearing to supply a list of projects to
support an increase, airports have been unable to point to a single
project that has not proceeded because of a lack of funding.

According to financial reports filed with the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA), airport revenues are at record levels. Airports
collected over $27 billion in 2015, including record high airline
rents and fees as well as non-airline rents and fees (i.e. parking,
food and beverage, retail and duty free).

Airports collected $3.2 billion through the PFC in 2016, breaking the
record set in 2015. 2017 is on track to be another record-breaker.

Passengers pay another tax to fund the Airport and Airway Trust Fund
(AATF), which supports airport improvement projects across the
country. The balance of that fund is nearly $7 billion, which is the
highest level since 2001. The Congressional Budget Office estimates
that the fund will eclipse $7 billion by the end of the 2017 Fiscal
Year.

Airports have almost $12.7 billion in unrestricted cash and
investments. They also have access to the bond market and historically
low interest rates, given airports’ investment-grade ratings.

This tax increase must be rejected.

ABOUT A4A

Annually, commercial aviation helps drive $1.5 trillion in U.S. economic
activity and more than 10 million U.S. jobs. Airlines for America (A4A)
vigorously advocates on behalf of the American airline industry as a
model of safety, customer service and environmental responsibility and
as the indispensable network that drives our nation's economy and global
competitiveness.

America needs a cohesive National Airline Policy that will support the
integral role the nation's airlines play in connecting people and goods
globally, spur the nation's economic growth and create more high-paying
jobs. A4A works collaboratively with the airlines, labor groups,
Congress and the Administration to improve air travel for everyone.

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